Video: The Best of Elton John on "Saturday Night Live"

Sir Elton John hosted Saturday Night Live last night. During his monologue he mentioned that he'd appeared once before on the show, as musical guest back in 1982. "And of all the things I tried once in the early eighties," said Elton, "this seemed like the safest to try again."

This wasn't exactly a great episode of SNL, but it had it's moments. What came as a bit of a surprise was how good Elton John's timing was. Even with sometimes mediocre material he more than held his own opposite the regular cast.

The show's cold open was actually one of the weaker segments, with Sir Elton playing a Liberace-type performer on The Lawrence Welk show.

The monologue might have been the show's highlight. Elton's impeccable timing was on full display and he talked at length about being a father. A few of the jokes he made about finding a surrogate (first choice Latoya Jackson wasn't available), and Baby Zachary's "refusing the breast... like both his fathers" seemed a little flip, but I loved his dismissal of people's concerns about his parenting. After all, the kid's "got ten fingers and ten toes.... and four hundred million dollars."

Towards the end of the night we had this gay cowboy sketch that had Elton rolling into a dusty town with sequined chaps and riding a unicorn.

And finally we have this sketch about knighted British celebrities banding together to fight a dragon. Memorable mostly for Tom Hanks' spot on Michael Caine impression and the potshots Sir Elton takes against Bono's Spiderman musical: "Can you smell a bomb tonight? Thank you everyone, The Lion King! Still in theaters!"

Ouch.